October, 2023
Dear Community,
We’ve been watching with heavy hearts at the reprehensible and continued violence in the Palestinian-Israeli region. We mourn for the families who have experienced so much loss in Palestine and Israel and for our New York neighbors who are navigating this crisis with loved ones in the region. We stand with the Palestinian, Muslim, and Jewish organizers in our Queens community who are working tirelessly to support communities in the face of anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and the dehumanization of Palestinians.
Connected Chef is an organization founded on the beliefs that all people deserve freedom, the right to self-determination, and the opportunity to live a life of abundance. We work to build a world free of apartheid and border walls; a world of shared power and resources that directly supports the liberation of oppressed people through the creation of a sovereign and community-led food system.
The ongoing violence we are witnessing in the region is rooted in our world's long time struggle against imperialism and colonization. Many in our Connected Chef community have long been displaced from their homelands and affected by these same powers.
We continue to participate in necessary conversations with organizations and community members, standing in solidarity and support against the devastating violence we’re seeing and reaching out to our elected officials to demand they too speak up and demand the following:
An immediate ceasefire in the region
Immediate restoration of energy, water, and communication services to the Gaza Strip
An end to US funding for weapons
We want to share some of the resources we’ve gathered & will update regularly.
Direct Action:
Call your Senators to demand a ceasefire - click for scripts & information
Call your Assembly members to demand NY tax dollars are no longer funding the Israeli military
Join a local peaceful protest! - Follow our social pages for updated protests in NYC
USCPR Actions and Resources - there is a breath of resources available from USCPR from actions, workshops and legislative details for study.
Books: If you are looking to learn more about the history of the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, the following books are incredible sources.
The Hundred Years War on Palestine, by Rashid Khalidi
A Land With A People: Palestinians and Jews Confront Zionism, a series of personal stories, history, poetry, and art, edited by Esther Farmer, Rosalind Pollack Petchesky and Sarah Sills
Salt Houses, by Hala Alyan
Against the Loveless World, by Susan Abulhawa
News Sources: These news sources are providing reporting coming directly from Palestine/Israel with minimal US agenda/propaganda.
Accounts to Follow: Jewish and Palestinian organizations and individuals who are sharing their direct experience and providing resources for action and organizing.
Engaging with any of the above resources is an exercise in taking action. We ask that in whatever action you choose that you center our collective humanity.
With love,
Kim and Omar
And the Connected Chef team